To The Wolves
by Denkoumaru
Summary: Renji will soon find out that the scariest of monsters are men themselves. Byakuya/Renji
1. Chapter 1

A lot of help was given by Kei-Chan!!! With out her it probably wouldn't be as good as it is now xD. And thanks to Blossom Morphin who also helped out a lot.

**Title: To The Wolves.**

**By Denkoumaru Aka Noodlepunk**

Summary: He should have known better than to go into the forest alone. Monsters lurked around every tree and rock. The elders had warned all the children about them when they were all nothing more than babies clinging to their mothers' skirts. But Renji, the best warrior for his age in the village, could take on any monster big, small or hairy. What he didn't know was that the worst monsters aren't always the ones that crawl or ooze, lurking behind every corner; sometimes the scariest of all monsters are men.

**Prologue: Eaten Alive.**

He should have listened to the elders, even if their sanity was often questionable. Then maybe, just maybe he wouldn't be on his knees pinned beneath another man, fingers shoved in his mouth. He choked back a sob as those long fingers pushed further into the depths of his moist cavern, drool dribbling down his chin. A hot mouth pressed against his ear, panting. Slim fingers began to pull out before being shoved roughly back in. The motion repeated several times before his tongue was pinned down. Lips brushed against his throat before teeth sank into his neck, thick tendons tensed up under the onslaught. Renji couldn't keep a muffled cry from escaping. The man slipped his fingers out to Renji's relief. He could feel cold steel boring holes into the back of his skull. The young lord, for he refused to give any other name to his molester, grabbed the kimono at his shoulders and dragged the material down to expose the tattoos that Renji had been so proud of. Masculine hands caressed down his sides, past his thighs at the edge of the pink robe he had been forced to wear that day. Warm hands bit into his thighs as the young noble pushed the edge of the robe up, exposing more flesh. The fabric rasped as it was pulled up farther, stopping as if to tease the petrified Renji.

He wanted so desperately to yell out for help. No one would come even if they did hear him scream. At first he had been oblivious to the looks the other servants and slaves gave him. Some with a quiet look of pity. Others with plain disgust, but the worst of all were the ones who didn't even look at him at all, as if he wasn't real.

Byakuya looked down at the trembling form beneath him with satisfaction. He couldn't believe he had almost left this one untouched. The thought of that hard body stretched beneath him in complete submission, body completely open to accept every one of his touches, wanted or not, sent a tremor of excitement through his very being. Reaching out, Byakuya tugged on the hair tie that held such magnificence hair in restraint. He watched as hair the color of blood fell down broad shoulders, mixing with the stark black markings. Grabbing a fist full, he jerked the man's head back so he could look him in the eye. "I requested that you wear your hair down today." They both knew it hadn't been a request. It had been a command, as was the woman's clothing that Renji been forced to don to please his... master.

Cold calculating eyes took in every gasp and the fine trembling of his lips, that begged to be kissed. "I see that you disobeyed again. It makes one think you enjoy being punished by my hands."

Fear tainted with dark desire shot through Renji as hands that where like relentless iron traps coaxed his legs to spread further to accommodate the young lord. He felt powerless to stop the hands that crept under his robe to seize at his very core and wring a gasp from him before he could prevent it. Cloth covered hips thrust against his ass in a slow grind. Renji could feel his master's excitement. "You know what I like." A low growl left Byakuya's throat. "That's it, spread them farther." He watched with a critical eye as his slave reluctantly moved into position.

Renji found himself shuddering, but was it in fear or anticipation?

~~~~~~~~~**Noodlepunk**~~~~~~~~~~~

I've been working on this story since summer. Its taken me a while to get everything ready for to actually get typed out. First story I have written in a long time. I hope you all enjoyed it. Hopefully the next chapter will come out soon. Dont hold your breath. Thanks for taking you time to read this. ~Bows~


	2. Chapter 2

Fist off Id like to apologize for the wait. I have a full time job and it eats up a lot of my free time xP. Ill try to get the next chapter out a lot sooner than the last. Hopefully the length makes up for it. Im kind of nervous about this chapter. It is the longest one I have ever written and not sure if its any good. Byakuya's hard to write! Hope you enjoy! ANd thank you for taking the time to read this. Collapses in a corner.

And like always thank you Kei-chan! And my beta readers!

**Chapter 1: Its Never Sweet, And Never Ending.**

**Chapter Summary:** Renji enters the forbidden forest, and runs in to a little trouble along the way.

Sighing, Renji shifted positions to relieve the pain in his back side. He had traveled far from his village into the forbidden part of the forest for just one thing and one thing only. He looked down at his arm, tentative fingers pulled back the bandage, to reveal newly inked flesh. Renji winced as the bandages finally came off with one last tug. It had taken him the better part of two moons to track down the boar. Just for this. The pain that came with it was irrelevant, because soon he would become a adult in the eyes of the people and more importantly the elders of his village. He would be able to move out of his mother's house. Renji had already secretly been storing the materials to build his own.

Jagged lines crawled up his arm to connect with the tattoo that scrawled down his back. Every one of them had a story to tell: what he had hunted, how long it taken him. Renji reached out to grab the bag the herbalist, Yulan had given him. The hunter pulled out several creams meant to keep the skin from cracking, stave off infection and help the ink set in. Hissing in slight pain as he rubbed the cream in, he thought he would have gotten use to this particular pain by now. Trailing a careful finger down the tattooed flesh evoked memories of his first tattoo at the age of thirteen. Oh, how he had cried when his first one was being applied.

"One more, just one more," whispered Renji. Fingers faltered in their path when a rustling sound caught his attention. It came from across the clearing from the tree he had been sitting in for nearly the entire day. Excitement built in his chest causing him to reach awkwardly for the bow and arrows at his side. This was what he had been sitting in a god forsaken tree for. A tree that was determined to leave splinters where they should never be... It had to be!

Breathing in deeply to calm himself, Renji readied his bow as he waited for the moment it walked through the brush. It's head held high, wide brown eyes darted around checking for any visible danger, tapered ears flicked nervously back and forth.

Every muscle in his body tensed, waiting for the right moment. Flicking out his tongue in a nervous habit too old to break, Renji nocked an arrow. Drawing it back he held the position for several moments. He steadied his breathing and waited for the it to fully emerge from the brush.

It was only mere moments, but they felt like a eternity to Renji. The hart finally walked forward into the clearing, bending over a patch of sweet grass. There! The arrow was released and sped to its target, a second following close behind it. The hart stumbled for a few paces before dashing off into the deeper portion of the forest. As a broad smile stretched across his face, he let out a whoop of joy. He jumped out of the tree and through the bushes that the deer had ran through.

Renji let out a exclamation of joy as the hart stumbled before crashing to the forest floor. He jogged to where his prize lay. Bending over his catch, Renji examined the two arrows that were embedded in to the young deer's hide. One had barely even sunk into the hind quarters, while the other was in the shoulder. That was odd, none of his arrows had been killing shots. Looking closer he saw it, a red fletch blooming from the buck's neck. He could tell at a glance that it obviously wasn't one of his. It had been made by a more experienced hand. He had never seen anyone in his village make such a fine looking arrow.

"That's odd," whispered Renji, one eyebrow cocked as he ran his fingers up the shaft.

The rustle of underbrush and the snap of a twig to his right had Renji jerking from his crouching position. Startled russet eyes met surprised blue. A man stood at the edge of the clearing, disgust clearly written on his face. A face composed of narrowed features that would have been handsome except for the nasty expression it sported. His blond hair cropped close in a military cut. And the largest dog Renji had ever seen stood slightly behind the man. Its intense honey brown eyes followed every move he made in a fashion that Renji found rather chilling.

"Uhh... Hello."

Growling low the man looked at the filthy poacher that dared to come on his land to steal from him. "How dare you." A snarl quickly formed on the man's face, contorting his features.

A barely seen hand gesture set the dog at his side on the boy before he knew what was going on. Vicious teeth bit and tore at his clothes. The red-haired boy let out a bellow of pain when it bit into his wrist, swinging his leg out in the desperate hope that it would hit home. Hearing a yelp of pain, he scrambled to his feet. Grabbing for the bag near the deer, Renji darted away running as fast as he could. Crushing the bag to his chest he darted down a uneven path. His breathing became labored as he continued to run through the underbrush. Branches left welts in his flesh and pulled at his hair. He stopped for nothing, not even when his hair tie was torn loose along with a sizable portion of his hair. He even jumped into a river not caring how deep it was, in an effort to break his scent trail. If he stopped now, if he even stopped once to catch his breath, it would all be over. The look in the man's face was unforgiving. Something told Renji if he was caught by that man there would be hell to pay. White dots danced across his vision as he gasped for the breath his burning lungs so desperately needed. After running for what seemed like forever, he slowed his pace before coming to a stumbling halt.

"Did I loss them? " panted out Renji as he bent over, hands resting on his knees. Sit, he needed to sit down, but he didn't dare in case the man's dog had found his path.

A low rumbling growl was all the warning he got. The dog was on him before Renji had the slightest chance to run. He threw his arm up to protect his throat from the snapping mouth. Teeth sank into his forearm. He found himself rolling on the ground as he struggled with the beast, trying to keeping its jaws from his jugular. He pulled one hand free to reach for the small dagger at his waist. Snapping it free from the leather sheath, he brought it down in an arch. Blood sprayed as it sank into the monster's throat. Renji let out a howl of his own when the teeth sank deeper into his arm.

Throwing off the wounded beast Renji rolled to his feet, eyes wide and breathing labored. He backed away from the dog on the ground, scarcely containing the bile that crawled up his throat. Scrambling away from the whimpering dog, he saw the others before he heard them. There was four of them all slick and agile. A pack of dogs he hadn't seen before bounded down the path he had taken. Some with their nose to the ground, others had their eyes trained on him. Quickly whipping around he made the move to run not noticing the tree root that rose above the leaf covered ground. He fell hard, the breath he had managed to catch whooshed out. Renji was beginning to rather dislike being breathless...

They bore down on him with more ferocity than Renji would have ever believed possible. He reached for his knife, only to find an empty sheath. Where was it? Oh, no. Renji mentally berated himself for his foolishness. He had left his only weapon embedded in the other dog! He knew better!

Their baying increased as they surrounded him, a couple darting in nip at any flesh that was exposed. Terror-stricken, Renji did the only thing he could think of to save himself. He curled up in to the tiniest ball his bulky frame would allow.

His pursuer looked down at his favorite dog that laid unmoving on the ground.

"You... How?!" He didn't even finish his sentence before he ran to where his other dogs had brought the red-haired man down. Grabbing a fist full of that hair, he dragged the man from where he lay curled in a defensive position. Without hesitation fists rained down. Still holding on to the other man's hair he shook him in between blows.

"You thought you'd get away from me! " he snarled.

Renji was shaken hard enough to rattle his teeth, blood dribbling from his nose. He wasn't sure if it was broken or not, but it sure as hell hurt like it was. Blue eyes the color of a clear day hardened as they stared down at him.

"When I'm done with you there will be nothing left."

* * *

Frayed rope bit into his throat, as Renji moved to balance on the balls of his feet. The too short rope only allowed two options, to stand or be strangled. The man, who appeared to be some important lord's son, had also tied his hands behind his back. And after a day with little water and no food, he had begun to sway alarmingly. Pure determination was all that had kept him standing, any slip or falter in balance would be the end. He knew when the pain and despair became unbearable he'd hope for it. But soon banished that thought as unworthy. _What kind of warrior was he that he couldn't take a little pain?_

He was so far away from anyone he cared for. He barely contained a sob as the hot tears spilled down his face. The rain last night, though refreshing on his heated flesh did nothing for his attempts to keep his balance. It had turned the dry dirt into an inescapable death sentence. Sticking out his tongue to catch any moisture, he was desperate to lick off the morning dew that clung to the pole he was tied to.

His wounds from the dogs and beatings now festered and oozed. He knew in an abstracted fashion that he was far from lucid, and idly pondered if this might in fact be a fever induced dream.

He heard clattering and the rushing of feet. He watched with half lidded eyes, as a horse drawn gilt edged carriage came rolling up the cobbled road. It started to slow as it approached, the driver had spotted him.

"Stop."

The curtains were drawn back, giving the occupant a clear view. Gritting his teeth in anger at the sight, Lord Oriwari looked down at the blood covered figure suspended from a stake that hadn't been there before he left.

"That insolent little brat!" ground out the middle-aged man.

The only thought that crossed Renji's mind was this man was obviously someone important.

"To the house this instant and be quick about it!"

Servants scurried away from the manor's door as it burst precipitously open. The young lord tumbled out to stand in the courtyard.

"I don't care if he killed your foul dog! I was gone a week! A week! And you already think you run my estate and can deal out punishment as you see fit! I ought to whip you like that filthy mongrel staked outside!" Lord Oriwari was furious, his face a deep red. This ungrateful little whelp thought he could run his estate better than he.

"Answer me, Aki!"

"I'm sorry,Father, but he disrespected me! What else was I suppose to do!? He killed Dai!"

"What you should have done was throw him in a dungeon and wait for my return! This estate is not yet yours!" Raising his hand in anger, he almost brought it down upon his cowering son. "I should have gotten married again. Then maybe I would have at least one competent son!"

"I am sorry, Father!" screamed out Aki as he saw his father's raised fist. His father paused and breathed in deeply.

"Aki... Do not worry, your father will make it right. Now go before I change my mind about whipping you." Making a shooing motion with his hand, Oriwari watched as his only son scrambled away. Tsking in his head as he watched him scamper back in the manor and down the hall in front of him. Maybe he should have remarried after all.

"Someone go get me Yuuchi! And tell him to meet me in my study. There is something I'd like him to do."

* * *

Renji gasped in pain as the muscles in his legs spasmed from the strain and dehydration. There was no way he could possibly survive another night of this treatment. Renji just wanted to sleep, closing his eyes for a moment couldn't hurt could it? No! If he slipped even once he'd be done for. There would be no way to stand back up in the condition he was in. But sleep sounded so divine. Just a couple seconds couldn't hurt.

His eyes flew open as he gasped for breath. His feet had finally collapsed out from under him. Was this really how he was going to die? He felt nothing by bone deep fear, or maybe it was the painful lack of oxygen gripping his chest. Mouth gaping, he thrashed and gasped with all his might for breath.

"Shit!"

Renji was beyond feeling the hands that gripped him trying to prop him up into a more stable position. The poacher was too big for Yuuchi to be manhandling him. Why couldn't they have sent someone bigger? He let go of the poor brute long enough to grab the knife necessary to cut at the rope and save his life. His deft hands began to cut the hard fiber wrapped around the boy's neck. Yuuchi watched as startling red eyes locked on his for a moment before dulling and rolling up into the boy's skull. Finally the rope snapped and he crumpled at Yuuchi's feet. He sighed in relief when the boy he had thought to be a corpse shuddered and resumed gasping for air.

He'd been out for hours. No amount of yelling or prodding roused him. Sighing in defeat, Yuuchi scowled down at his newest assignment. He was filthy and that wouldn't do at all. He walked briskly out of the barn where he had dragged the unconscious lad. Renji sputtered weakly as ice cold water was rudely dumped over his head. All he had the time to hazily register was cold, wet and the ever present pain, before a man reappeared from the fog that seemed to surround him and dumped another bucket over him.

"Get up. We don't have much time. Oriwari-Sama wants you out of here within the day."

" Oriwari-Sama?" rasped Renji. He shot a dazed look at the older man. The mystery resolved as to where the icy cold water had come from.

"Quickly get up, we need to get you as clean as possible." He shoved a spare robe he had gotten from the maids at the boy.

"Put it on and make it quick."

Renji needed no more prompting, but couldn't find a way to do as he had been told. The robe was thin, but would protect him from any more exposure. He attempted to push himself up, but his trembling limbs would not serve him. Yuuchi sighed heavily, but helped him to sit up and dropped the robe on over his head. Shivering he frowned blankly at the length, it barely went past his knees. Both hands grasped at the robe to prevent it from crawling up, as the man pushed him up against the wall.

"Now that you're decent, we can get this over with. Stay put, and don't even think about running. That would make me greatly displeased with you."

Renji inwardly snorted at the assumption that he was up to running in the first place. Couldn't the man see that he could barely sit up on his own? Frowning again at the length of the robe, he tugged at one corner trying in vain to cover his ass, as he slid unceremoniously back to the ground. He tried his best not to fall back into the puddle of water.

When the man returned, another one trailed behind him. Unlike the first man, his hair went past his chin in dark oily tendrils that looked like they hadn't seen a decent bath in years. Renji wrinkled his nose as the man came closer, by the smell of him, he probably hadn't had one in months.

"So this is what you begged me to come for?" The other man sneered at Yuuchi. He walked around Renji a couple times, before stopping in front of him. Rough hands forced open his mouth, fingers ran across even teeth. "Nothing's loose," muttered the slaver, looking at the boy slumped against the wall, all the while taking in the bruises and wounds. "He has a sturdy build, may be good for the fields." Renji let out a pathetic little squeak instead of the outraged bellow he intended, as the man took the liberty to fondle him under his robes. "Hmm... He's decent enough. Maybe a brothel, if he wasn't in such bad condition."

_It's more than decent!_ cried Renji indignantly.

" Five copper."

"What? Surely he's worth more than that!" exclaimed Yuuchi. "The heathen was hard to capture. He took the master hours to hunt down. In the process of acquiring him, he killed the master's prized dog. Surely 10 gold would not be to much to ask."

" He might have very well been that and more at one point, but look at him. Barely upright and looks half dead. He's malnourished and obviously beaten to a bloody mess. I'll be lucky if I can even get a couple bronze. And that's only if I can get him cleaned up before the auction," growled out the slaver known as Rei. "Five copper is it. I'll go no higher. Be glad I'm offering you that much."

Yuuchi fumed silently, hands clenching into fists. He'd love to show the greasy man his place. But Oriwari-Sama wanted the red-head gone today, and he didn't have time to wait for another slaver to come through.

"Fine. It's a deal, Rei," growled out Yuuchi.

"Hahaha... Good man, good man! It's a pleasure doing business with you," mocked Rei. The sneer that never seemed to leave his face for long returned. Renji slumped over, watching from under his hair as the money was exchanged between the two.

Rei looked at the sweat soaked and panting boy. "Poor thing. Too bad those nasty men got a hold of you before I did," rumbled the man, hands brushing the dirt covered hair that the buckets of water had not cleaned out of Renji's face.

"I have heard that Lord Aki has a nasty temper. Looks like you got the worst of it. Come. It's time to go." Rei grasped his new chattel by his arm and jerked him to his feet. Renji stumbled and would have fallen if not for the hand grasping his upper arm. The other man practically carrying him the short distance to the wooden cart.

Collapsing in the musty moist hay felt like heaven. Renji sighed in relief until the cart jerked into motion and barely managed to contain the bile that tore at his raw throat. The only emotion Renji felt as he realized that he was getting farther and farther away from his village, was deep, dark despair. _What was going to happen to him?_ Closing his eyes, he clutched his stomach, rolling over to his side, and dry retched before passing out. Renji lay unaware as the sun set off in the distance.

* * *

Renji was pulled staggering to his feet by rough hands on his arm. He was then jerked painfully up the stairs of a stage in disrepair. The boards groaned in protest under his weight. He should have been worried it would give out under his and the bigger man's weight when he was pushed none too gently to the center of the stage. There was a brief moment when the he was released from the tight grip, so the other man could talk to the auctioneer. It was a moment of carelessness. If he hadn't been in such a feverish state, Renji would have made a bolt for freedom. His thoughts were all jumbled and he couldn't seem to think about more than one thing before his thoughts went skittering off like nervous conies.

"We have a treat for you tonight, ladies and gentlemen. Here we have a young man freshly caught in the south," the auctioneer yelled out for the whole crowed to hear. Renji swayed on his feet, blurry eyes sweeping the crowd, never landing for more than a few seconds on any one person.

"He's not yet twenty. Broad shoulders and strong back. Sure to make a good field hand for your crops!"

Grey steel eyes watched as they paraded the slaves one by one. Snorting at the clearly outrageous descriptions the announcer yelled out trying to get the crowed excited to drum up better bids.

"Do you see anything of interest, Byakuya-Sama?" asked the older gentlemen at his side. He glanced at the man next to him and brought up a lavender scented cloth to stave off the smell. Byakuya hated the market, especially the slave auctions. The stench of human waste, fear and desperation was nearly suffocating.

"No, there doesn't seem to be anything of...quality this season," sneered Byakuya. He knew he should have just sent his manservant, Jirou by himself. But it had to be done right and if he had sent him alone, he'd have just picked any old wench and been on his way.

"This is a waste of time, Jirou. Let's leave." Byakuya stood from the chair.

"Ahh... Wait sir. It's not done yet. There's one more."

Turning around Byakuya looked at the man swaying on the stage. He was barely standing, eyes incapable of staying on one thing for more than a couple seconds. Long hair of an undetermined color brushed his shoulders. Wearing just a fundoshi, only made it glaringly obvious that they hadn't even bothered to clean him. There were several markings across his body that piqued a slight interest within him. He looked back to his face, cringing away from the vacant look in his eyes.

"He's dumb. Leave it. We're leaving before I waste anymore time in this pit."

He left without a glance back, as the winner was announced.


End file.
